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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. cap — a lid
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. cap — of ice
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. chest — of your body
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. last — final
  15. cap — a hat
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. chest — of your body
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. date — the fruit
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. chest — a box

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com